reading the Bar code font

[Aussie John]

I am having trouble getting my camera and iPad on IOS to recognise the barcode. I am using IDautomationHC39 font, and am wondering if the barcode type is the problem (3 of 9)

[Ocean West]

Are you generating the barcode yourself with the font or are the barcodes already generated by someone else? 

 

Can you scan and attach a sample we can test on iOS device and also a laser barcode reader see if that works.

 

If you are generating the barcodes you may consider ditching the font and use https://www.geistinteractive.com/products/filemaker-barcode/ it doesn't require any fonts. 

[jbante]

I'm assuming that you're using the Insert From Device script step in FileMaker Go 13 to scan the barcode; is that correct? Can you share with us an image of the barcode you're trying to scan and a sample of the script you're using? FileMaker Go doesn't have any problem scanning Code 39 barcodes as long as all the right pieces are in place.

 

The gotcha that comes up most often with Code 39 barcodes from a font is that you have to remember to show not just the data you want to include in the barcode, but also the start/stop patterns for the barcode. So if you want a barcode with the data ABC123, you actually need to render *ABC123*. (Asterisks are used with most Code 39 barcode fonts to represent the start/stop patterns.) If you're printing a field, you'd make a calculation based on the field — "*" & Table::dataField & "*" — and include the calculation on your layout instead of the original data field. If you're using a merge field formatted with the barcode font, you could instead simply add the asterisks before and after the merged data: *<<dataField>>*

 

If you were using an image-based method of making barcodes instead of a font, such as Barcode Creator, the rendering software would typically take care of that kind of detail for you so you don't have to worry about it. (Disclosure: I wrote Barcode Creator.)

 

What settings are you using with the Insert From Device script step? Can you show us a screenshot of the configuration dialog for that step? Make sure the Code 39 barcode type is selected as one of the types that will be scanned. De-selecting other barcode types can minimize the chance of a barcode being misinterpreted as a different type. I have heard that de-selecting all the other barcode types might also improve performance, but I haven't confirmed that myself.

[Aussie John]

Thanks Jbante! ! ! ! ! - adding the asterisks did the trick.

For info - I generated the barcode directly from the font field.